Financial firms across the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region are intensifying their regional expansion plans, though banks remain cautious and selective regarding balance-sheet-intensive activities. According to the ASIFMA 2026 APAC Capital Markets Survey, conducted in partnership with KPMG, most institutions are prioritizing growth within familiar domains rather than pursuing aggressive entry into untested markets. Overall, 66% of surveyed firms plan to scale up existing operations over the next three years—up from 59% in 2025 and 40% in 2023/24—while 63% intend to broaden product offerings, and 31% expect to enter new geographic markets.
For banking-specific business lines, expansion strategies are noticeably measured due to capital commitment constraints. Products requiring heavy balance-sheet capacity or deep relationship management—such as commercial banking, investment banking, custody, and commodities—were each cited by only about 25% of respondents as target areas for expansion. Despite this selectivity, investment banking increased its share of respondents’ active operations by five percentage points to 43%, while commercial/institutional banking and prime brokerage both rose to 34%. Conversely, retail banking participation dropped to 9%. The survey sampled 34 ASIFMA buy-side and sell-side member institutions, with sell-side firms accounting for 60% of respondents.
Target expansion destinations highlight shifting regional priorities across Asia:
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Singapore leads as the top growth market, cited by 47% of respondents.
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Hong Kong SAR and South Korea followed closely at 44% each, with South Korea seeing a major surge from 21% in 2025.
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Mainland China and Japan tied at 41%, reflecting a steep drop for Mainland China from 88% interest in 2021.
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Australia, India, and Taiwan rounded out key targets at 38% each.
Parallel to geographic expansion, institutions are leveraging regulated digital assets—specifically stablecoins and tokenized financial assets—to enhance balance-sheet efficiency and settlement speeds. However, widespread adoption remains contingent on clear prerequisites: 26% of respondents cited regulatory certainty as the primary requirement, another 26% pointed to a proven commercial business case, and 19% highlighted the need for robust risk management, governance, and compliance frameworks.
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